Foldable boat



March 1965' A. F. JACOBSON 3,173,150

FOLDABLE BOAT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 6, 1963 INVENTOR. A.FOLKE JACOBSON March 16, 1965 A. F. JACOBSON 3,173,160

FOLDABLE BOAT Filed May 6, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG-7 INVENTOR. A. FOLKE JACOBSON United States Patent 3,173,160 FOLDABLE BOAT Arvid Folke Jacobson, 621 E. 33rd, Spokane 36, Wash. Filed May 6, 1963, Ser. No. 277,989 4 Claims. (Cl. 9-2) This invention is a foldable boat particularly adapted to form a relatively small unit when in the folded position and movable to an unfolded position to materially increase the size and capacity.

The present invention is admirably adapted for use in the field of conventional sporting boats, commonly on the market today, but it will be understood that its features may also be employed in a novel toy for the enjoyment of children.

Many states have a maximum limit to the load size which may be carried on their public roads and highways without a special permit issued upon payment of a penalty fee. Frequently, this dictates the size of boat that one will purchase, suffering along with a boat that is too small for the intended use, to avoid payment of the excessive fees. one would desire is so large and cumbersome that it is dilficult to handle on a trailer behind a conventional towing automobile.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a foldable boat which has a main hull and a secondary hull adapted to be nested one within the other; the secondary hull being movable into successive relationship to said main hull while remaining physically interconnected therewith.

Another object of the present invention lies in the pro vision of the foldable boat of the character above described in which a deck is hingedly interconnected between said main hull and said secondary bull to mechanically inter-relate said hull sections.

It is another object of the present invention toprovide on the aforementioned deck, hinged walls, adapted for pivotal movement from a folded position, superposed on said deck to an extended position, substantially normal thereto and complemental to the side configurations of said successive hulls and securable thereto for forming a rigid unit with the successive hulls.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent during the course of the following description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein a preferred form of the present invention is disclosed.

The drawings are exemplifying only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention beyond that specifically set forth in the appended claims.

In the drawings, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts,

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of a foldable boat having the hulls nested and mounted upon a mobilizing trailer;

FIGURE 2 is a reduced scale side elevation of the boat in the unfolded position, wherein the secondary hull is successive to the main hull;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the boat illustrated in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a view of the present invention in an intermediate position between the folded position and the unfolded position and showing a further modified position by broken lines;

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of the foldable boat in its folded position;

FIGURE 6 is a vertical section taken substantially on the plane indicated by line 66 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a Vertical section taken substantially on the plane indicated by line 77 of FIGURE 3; and

In other instances, a boat of the size 3,173,160 Patented Mar. 16,1965

ice

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View of the releasable securing means and taken substantially on the plane indicated by line 8-8 of FIGURE 2.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the foldable boat 10, as seen in FIGURE 1, may be supported upon a conventional wheel-supported boat trailer, indicated in its entirety by the numeral 11, and comprises a main hull 12 having conventional side walls 13-13 topped by gunwales 1414 and includes a customary prow and a stern. At the stern of the main hull 12 I provide a tran som 15 to which is secured a motor mount 16 adapted to receive the outboard motor 17 for motivating the boat 10.

By means of a piano-type hinge 18, I hingedly connect a substantially planar deck 19 to the transom 15 on a lateral horizontal axis for swinging movements in a vertical plane from a first position as shown at 19' in FIG- URES 1, 4 and 6 to a second or extended position 19 as shownin FIGURES 2, 3 and 7.

It will be noted that the desk 19 is provided with a central aperture 20 forming an access opening into the secondary hull 21 when the deck is in the first position 19'. This access opening 20 also serves asan opening through which the outboard motor 17 extends when the deck is in the position shown at 19 and is of such dimension as to admit of steering movements of the motor as shown by broken lines in FIGURE 3.

It will be noted that the hulls 12 and 21 are nested in the first position, both having their open tops disposed upwardly. To open or unfold the boat to its second position, wherein the secondary hull 21 is disposed in successive relationship to the main hull 12, the deck 19 is swung upwardly in accordance with the direction indicated by arrow 33 (FIGURE 4) to its extended position. At any convenient place along the arc of movement of the deck 19 and when clearance of the secondary hull 21 from the main hull 12 is sufiicient, the secondary hull 21 is rotated as seen by arrow 23 about the axis of the pianotype hinge 24 until it is disposed directly behind the main hull 12.

The deck 19 is provided with Walls 2222 which are hingedly secured at 26'-26', preferably by means of piano-type hinges and shown in the folded position at 25 of FIGURE 6, so that when the deck 19 is in the extended position and the walls are disposed substantially normal thereto, they will form complemental portions of the side walls 13 of the main hull 12 and side walls 26 of the secondary hull 21.

The side walls 26 of the secondary hull 21 are provided with vertical recesses 27 to receive the marginal edge portions 28 of the walls 22 whereas the transom 15 is provided with vertical recesses 29 to receive the marginal edge portion 30 of the walls 22.

Releasable fasteners 31, which are shown to be of the Zeus type, but which may assume other desired configurations, are provided for releasably securing the walls 22 to both hulls 12 and 21 for forming a rigid unit when in the unfolded or extended position shown in FIGURES 2 and 3.

The boat may be folded by reversing the movements described, as indicated by arrows 23 and 33. For example, this may be accomplished by first inverting the secondary hull 21 onto the deck 19 and then swinging the deck 19 about its hinge 18 to nest the secondary hull 21 into the main hull 12.

When it is desired to have protection against rain, the secondary hull 21 and the deck 19 may be secured in their lineal relationship and swung about hinge 18 to the broken line position of FIGURE 4 wherein a supporting post 32 may be provided to form a roof over the main hull 12.

Having thus described my invention, I desire to secure a secondary hull successive of and spaced from said by Letters Patent of the United States the following: main hull hingedly connected to said deck at its 1. A foldable boat of the character described, comother end for swinging movement about a lateral prising: axis parallel to said first named axis and in a vertia main hull including a transom; 5 cal plane;

a secondary hull in a first position wherein it is removsaid hulls and deck being relatively disposed for nestably nested-in said main hull; ing saidsecondary hull in said main hull;

a deck hinged atone end to said transom for swinging walls hingedly carried by said deck for pivotal movemovement in a vertical plane from a first position ment from a folded position to an extended position superposed over said main hull; and complemental to the side configurations of said suethe other end of' said deck being hinged to said seccessive hulls and extending therebetween.

ondary hull'for pivotal movement of said secondary 4. The invention defined in claim 3 and further charachull to a position successive of and spaced from said terized by means releasably securing said walls to both main hull with said deck disposed therebetween. said hulls for forming a rigid unit.

2. The invention defined in claim 1 and further characterized by said deck having an access opening there- References Cited y the Examine! through, adapted to encircle an outboard motor sup UNITED A S PA S ported on said transom.

3. A foldable' boat of the character described, com Carter T 92 rising: V Jefferson 9-2 P 3,090,973 5/63 Levinson 9 2 x a main hull; a deck hingedly connected at one end to said main FERGUS S MIDDLETON Primary Examiner hull for swinging movement about a lateral axis and in a vertical plane from a position superposed over MILTON BUCHLER, Examine"- said hull to a substantially horizontal position extending rearwardly from said hull; 

1. A FOLDABLE BOAT OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, COMPRISING: A MAIN HULL INCLUDING A TRANSOM; A SECONDARY HULL IN A FIRST POSITION WHEREIN IT IS REMOVABLY NESTED IN SAID MAIN HULL; A DECK HINGED AT ONE END OF SAID TRANSOM FOR SWINGING MOVEMENT IN A VERTICAL PLANE FROM A FIRST POSITION SUPERPOSED OVER SAID MAIN HULL; AND THE OTHER END OF SAID DECK BEING HINGED TO SAID SECONDARY HULL FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF SAID SECONDARY 